Customer Reviews

SCARECROW

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I found this book in the Young Adult section of my library, but when I started reading it, I wondered why it was there, because it seemed like it was more for an older audience. The main characters in the story are adults (not old, though), and it wasn't written like many of the other books I have read by Richie Tankersley Cusick. However, I found myself getting into the story and really liking it, even though it didn't have romance in it (at first). This book is actually creepy and gory (somewhat), and scary, and a little sad.

The main character, whose husband and son died, and she is still really sad about it, for some reason is at a farmhouse in the Ozarks in the middle of nowhere (I think she crashed her car)with a strange family. The little six-year-old girl can tell the future, a young boy is treated terribly by his mother for no reason (when you find out the reason, you'll be very surprised!), and the father seems controlling. Every year the family makes scarecrows, but he orders them all to be burned at the end of the year, which the main character finds very strange. There is also the mother's sweet, much younger sister, who is very normal and wants to get out into the real world, where she has never been (the family really is cut off from all other people), but her sister forbids it. When it is time for all of the scarecrows to be burned, the younger sister hides hers and doesn't burn it, because she so desperately wants a guy friend.

The main character begins to really get freaked out when she realizes that the family does not want her to leave their home, and she knows she is in danger.

This book is very well written, with great detail. All of the elements are woven together neatly, and the ending will amaze you. All of the answers to why this family is so strange will reveal themselves. I strongly recommend this book, also if you have strong, um, morals (?) this might not be a good book for you.

Wow, where do I begin? Since I have all of RTC's books except for two, I was on a crusade to locate and purchase "Scarecrow". I finally got my greedy little hands on it,and read it in one day. Gosh...you know, I really liked this book, it was well-written, and the characters are very, very memorable. But it's a very DARK tale..that's the only way I can think of describe it. It had almost a nightmarish feel to it, like a bad dream that you are relieved to wake up from in the morning. Pamela begins to figure how wrong everything is at the Whittaker's farm, and how the Ozark wilderness keeps them completely shut off from the world. The members of the Whittaker family are unforgettable: Seth, the strong, silent, angry husband that has plenty to hide. Rachel, the sweet and kind wife who seems to just want a happy family...or does she? Franny, the oldest daughter, who is willing to do almost anything to escape the simple life of the farm. And Micah, the strange, silent son who seems desperate to communicate something to Pamela. And finally, Girlie, the youngest child who has eerie, unnatural powers that no one should be cursed with. Something horrible, something evil, is going on in this remote area, and Pamela has been tossed right into the middle of it. NOTE: I would NOT recommend this book for younger readers. This really is an adult book, and there are some scenes that are probably just for teens and up. Thanks!

This is a VERY good book. Will keep you in suspense until the very end. I've read almost all of Tankersley's books, but this one shocked me the most.
The characters are well done and the storyline is fantastic. This book is a lot more mature than her other books. Anyone who likes anything else that she's written definitely needs to read this one.

This is a tale for all time. A true suspense novel that keeps you guessing until the very end and still surprises you is almost unheard of. This one may even give you nightmares.

Pamela in stranded in the Ozarks for an unknow amount of time, but trust me, the sooner she is out of the place the better. Trying to find out what keeps her up at night in fear will probably keep you up at night out of fear as well.

This is not your average horror novel. It's more a Southern Gothic, out on the hillbilly farm.

Traveler Pamela Westbrook has an auto accident while traveling through the Ozarks, and is picked up by the nearby Whittaker family: suspicious patriarch Seth; his friendly and subdued wife Rachel; and their son and two daughters, the young son with only one hand and a curious disposition, the older daughter anxious to escape the farm for the big city with Pamela, and the little girl a possible witch, able to heal with her hands and rumored to have the ability to raise the dead. Pamela enjoys her stay with the family, but is eager to go home. Someone, however, very much wants her to stay - and may be willing to kill to get their wish.

This reads like one of the better episodes of The Twilight Zone, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour or Boris Karloff's Thriller. To say too much would be to spoil the intricately thought-out plot and many clever surprises along the way. Suffice it to say it's more or less a superior Gothic murder mystery, with just a dash of the supernatural, containing family secrets, buried bodies, and people who aren't what they seem.

A real treat.

Being a huge fan of Richie Tankersley Cusick's young adult books, I was so excited to hear she had some adult ones. And I was so not disappointed when I finally got to read this. It's a great blend of dark, supernatural drama and horror. I really wish RTC would write some more adult books like this!

I have read all of Dean Koontz and John Saul's books and am 34 years old - I read a used copy of Scarecrow and I couldn't sleep at night because it freaked me out so much! I felt really stupid when I went to the bookstore and asked why didn't they have this author's books and the guy said "you need to look in the young adult section". I am interested in buying some of Cusick's books, but I don't want anything too juvenile - if they are all as scary as Scarecrow, there won't be a problem! [....]

This is almost my favourite "horror" book ever written, and I have read many of them. The story draws you in and keeps you interested. I never guessed where this story was headed, nor who the culprit was until the very last few pages. And then it really surprised me. Mr. Cusick knows how to keep the suspense going, and he also writes some very memorable characters. I thought he did an exceptional job with the character Seth, who was my favourite with his brooding Ozark manner. You can almost smell the dirt of the farmland, see the scarecrows, hear the wind and cringe at the shadows. As the story progresses, it really is a true page-turner in every sense--literally for me, toward the end. I first read this book in 1990, and put it on my shelf and didn't think more about it for a long time. Then just the other day I was out of reading material and saw the book, and thought I'd read it again. I am glad I did, because I really had forgotten much of it and it was even more enjoyable the second time. I would recommend this book to anyone, it's an awesome feat of storytelling and a great story.

I love this author and this book. Once again you get suprised at the end and the chemistry between the characters is great. I will buy every one of her books !

This book definitely has some gloomy and sadistic happenings that will freak you out. You won't have a clue what's really been going on until the very end. I gave it 4 stars because there are a few things that I wish didn't happen in the story and because I'm mad with one of the characters because they are clearly very INSANE! Anyhow, it was a very good read.